"I won't answer them right away," he said. "Not till I get into some business. I'll go farther down town today, and try there."
At ten o'clock that morning, a solemn party of seven men met in the back room of the Mertonville Bank.
"Gentlemen of the Board of Trustees, please come to order. I suppose we all agree? We need a teacher of experience. The academy's not doing well. The lady principal can't do everything. She must have a good assistant."
"Who's your candidate, Squire Crowninshield?" asked Judge Edwards. "I'm trustee as Judge of the County Court. I've had thirty-one applications for my vote."
"I've had more than that," said the Squire good humoredly. "I won't name my choice till after the first ballot. I want to know who are the other candidates first."
"So do I," said Judge Edwards. "I won't name mine at once, either. Who is yours, Elder Holloway?"
"We'd better have a nominating ballot," remarked the Elder, handing a folded slip of paper to Mr. Murdoch, the editor of the Eagle. "Who is yours, Mr. Jeroliman?"
"I haven't any candidate," replied the bank-president, with a worried look. "I won't name any, but I'll put a ballot in."
"Try that, then," said General Smith, who was standing instead of sitting down at the long table. "Just a suggestion."
Every trustee had something to say as to how he had been besieged by applicants, until the seventh, who remarked: